Sustainable irrigation management strategy in

semi-arid climate conditions in South Italy Bartolomeo Dichio

bartolomeo.dichio@unibas.it

WHEN SPACE MEETS AGRICULTURE

Fostering interregional collaborations, investments and definition of user

requirements

Dichio B., Montanaro G., Mininni A.,

Amato M., Perniola M

Report Intergovernmental Panel

for Climate Change (Ipcc) September 2013 – Stockolm Approved Berlin,

Germany (7-11 April 2014)

There are not significant effects on

mitigation of Climate Change

- GLOBAL TEMPERATURES ARE LIKELY TO RISE BY 0.3 TO 5 °C BY THE END OF THE CENTURY.

Reaffirm the goal of limiting global temperature increase well below 2 degrees Celsius, while urging efforts to limit the increase to 1.5 degrees

Parties to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) reached a landmark agreement on December 12 in Paris

http://ec.europa.eu

Climate change in Europa

Esposito S. et al. 2014 Atti convegno Progetto

Agroscenari

apr giu ago ott dic feb0

40

80

120

160

200

ET0

precipitazioni

deficit = 855 mm

ET

o -

Pre

cip

ita

zio

ni (m

m)

mesi dell'anno

Rainfall

Basilicata – ITALY

agriculture

BASILICATA: hydrographical system

5 main rivers

Acerenza

Basentello

Montecotugno

Genzano Camastra

Pertusillo San Giuliano

BASILICATA Region: WATER

Maximum capacity of dams:

950 Mm3

Distribution of water use between sectors

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

Civil use Irrigation Industrial use

Mm

3 /yea

r

Basilicata

40%

Puglia

58%

Calabria

2%

Sharing of water resources with adjacent regions

BASILICATA Region

Irrigated fruit crops in Basilicata: 72 %

60%

640 Mm3/year

CSA is agriculture

that

• increases yields (poverty reduction & food security),

• makes yields more resilient in the face of worsening weather conditions (adaptation), and

• transforms the farm into a solution to the climate change problem (mitigation).

(World Bank , 2012)

Climate-Smart Agriculture is needed Climate-Smart Agriculture (sustainable) is needed

Potential win-wins for Sustainable soil and Water Outcomes

Biomass (Kg)

WUE =

Transpired Water (m3)

Marketable Yield value

WP =

Irrigation water

Optimization water use in Agroecosystem

WP = Water Productivity

Sustainable conventional

Compost (15 t ha-1)

Mineral N if necessary Mineral

fertilizers

Soil management

Pruning material

Fertilization

Guided drip irrigationCrop evapotraspiration and Soil Water Balance

Cipping pruning residues into

the soil

Untilled soil

spontaneous grass

Peach orchard

cv.Super Crimson/GF667

500 tree/ha

Water balance implementation

Soil data

Weather Parameters (ET0)

Crop data Soil water

balance

SWCmeasurements

Water balance

Optimased

So

il w

ate

r co

nte

nt

(%vo

l)

1°

layer

2°

laye

r

the continuous

monitoring of soil water

content along the soil

profile give us

information to correct

the irrigation

scheduling

Wetted soil by irrigation 90 cm Water Table 120 cm

Optimization and Application of Regulated deficit irrigation

From bud break

To Harvest 100% ETc

march/July.

Deficit application

50% ETc

At the end of september

Post - harvest

B. DICHIO, C. XILOYANNIS, A. SOFO, G. MONTANARO (2007). Effects of post-harvest regulated deficit

irrigation on carbohydrate and nitrogen partitioning, yield quality and vegetative growth of peach trees.

PLANT AND SOIL (ISSN:0032-079X). 127- 137. 290;

6 8 10 12 14 16 180

1

2

3

4

5

6

1,39 3,64 3,92 4,08 2,91 VPD (KPa)

E (

mm

ol

m-2s-1

)

ora del giorno

Daily w. transpired 66 lt/tree

Summer pruning 10 m2 p-1

2,3 litri H20 x m2 of leaves

24 L d-1p-1about 750 m3/ha

About 1000 m3/ha

How much water can be saved with summer pruning?

60-80 g

Incre

ase s

oil

wate

r hold

ing c

apacity

Sustainable managementpractices increase infiltration rateand water storage in soil

Mechanical tillage reduces water

infiltration causing runoff and

erosion processes

4250 m3/ha2934 m3/ha

Ksat160 (mm d-1)Ksat13 (mm d-1)

Irrigation volume (m3 ha-1)

2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 20090

2000

4000

6000

8000

Years

sustainableconventional

Irri

gati

on

vo

lum

e

(m

3h

a-1)

average 2004-2009

6350

4900 1450

Dichio et al. 2011

Water footprint (L) /Kg of fruit

Sustainable 220

Conventional 380

Sustainable € 2,11

Conventional € 1,34

Marketable Yield value (€)

W.P. =

Irrigation water (m3)

77

62

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Cu

mu

latv

e Y

ield

t/

ha

S ustainable C onventional

139

107

23

Profiler GSSI EMP-400

5000 values ECa for site (1 hectar)

To obtein soil variability maps (soil ECa )

(data interpolation: kriging)

Elaboration & validation data (-8%)

ECa

mS m-1

New Technologies in agriculture

Orchard management support (nursery,

establishment, irrigation, nutrition, etc)

Validation and implementation of the innovations at field level (testing, scaling up, demonstration, training)

Basilicata Innovation Partnership on Water

Department

Agriculture Department

Environment

Arpab

Alsia

Con. Bonifica

A. Bacino

Acq. Lucano

Unibas, TERN

G.O.

Water

Irrigation

G.O.

Water-Reuse Other

EIP Water

EIP AGRI

Definition of Priority

Action: Operational Group

G.O.

ERIAFF

Eur

ope

an i

nno

vati

on

Par

tner

ship

European

Commission

Regional Innovation Partnership on Water

Unit of Fruit Science

C. Xiloyannis

B. Dichio

V. Nuzzo

G. Celano

G. Montanaro

D. Palese

A. Sofo

A. Tuzio

E. Lardo

A. Mininni

A. Fiore

E. Xylogiannis

Thank you

Agreenment s.r.l. Spin Off Accademic

University of Basilicata

www.agreenment.it